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here is a link to the stuff i have painted so far for commission jobs!
http://s1300.beta.photobucket.com/user/AAguilera50/library/paint

Ive always specialized in rank and file models because I can get about 100 done in a day... haha but the occasional single model or special character is always fun to!


Thanks for looking
Tony A.

I believe this forum is for posting actual photographs, no offense.

 legoburner wrote:

3) This is a forum to actually show off pictures, so threads created here must contain at least one picture within the post itself. Simply posting a link to another site without including a picture in the post is not acceptable, and threads like that will be moved to the regular painting and modeling forum.

Thank you for being up front about being a commission painter, though! I really appreciate it, it makes you seem more honest. I look forward to seeing pictures of your work.

As was quoted above, the Showcase subforum requires at least one pic of a finished model in the first post. Moving thread to P&M general. Please review the forum rules, thanks very much.

ok no problem ! sorry about that!

dont think much of your commission work at all, no washes, plenty of paint dribbled outside the lines on some of your work, no highlighting either.

i hope your not charging too much...

There's more than one niche to be filled in the commission painting market. While we're spoiled here by eye candy from a great number of painters that fall into the "pay for what you could never even hope to do" category, there are also folks who only need the "pay for what you could do, but aren't willing/able to" treatment.

Personally, I wouldn't pay discount-internet-retailer-list price, let alone a premium, for models like those pictured (well, linked), but my standards and those of the next guy are bound to be different. If the OP didn't price accordingly, he'd never have made a sale... or has been very lucky with his pool of potential customers.

well thanks for the comments fellas, Im always trying to improve my work, but like i said i specialize in rank and file models, not the special characters in the front. I can get about 100 done models in a day. the Skaven army shown was done in about 5 to 6 days total. He wanted the army painted quickly and table top quality... so that is what I gave him. Im not saying I didn't my best but i was good enough for him and the other customers i painted for... I also charge very little compared to most people I know, charging at about 2 dollars a model and i give great deals the more models i get to paint from a customer. Any hints and tips you could give would be awesome and much appreciated! Im always trying to improve!

Kudos on the attitude, first and foremost - I've watched a number of budding commission painters flounder because they couldn't take criticism or proper stock of their own level, the market, etc. Looking to improve is never a bad thing, either. As far as advice is concerned, here's my take (keep your salt handy, as this is pure armchair generalship - I'm not a commission painter, nor do I ever plan to be):

I'd suggest slowing down, a tad, and putting a little more effort into each model. You've found your niche - fast turnaround, low price - but I think taking it to the extreme, at least doing so exclusively, is working against you. If someone wants a 100 model army, getting it done in two days instead of one is nothing - that's still ridiculously fast, but would allow you double the time to work. Actually using all of that time would mean decreasing your effective wage, but I feel like there's definitely a balance to be struck.

Looking through the pictures, I noticed a few splotches of inexplicable color - what looks to me like brush slip. It can happen to the best of us, should we let our guard down, but it's far more likely when rushing. A touch more care (or going back to fix problem areas) will keep little errors from creeping through to the finished product. When they're noticed, they tend to diminish the perceived quality of all the models around them.

I'd also recommend increasing your use of washes. I see evidence here and there of occasional wash use, but I think you're really under-utilizing them - they're pretty much perfect for you, as their effects are delightfully disproportionate to the time and effort involved in their use. At their simplest, washes will help you get a bit more depth out of models that appear to have just received a basecoat and drybrush.

More importantly, whether you simply wash last or apply a thin final coat as a translucent glaze, they'll help to smooth out otherwise rough and chalky finishes. With the amount of drybrushing you seem to do, this is a godsend. Looking at your Orks, going a bit heavier on the drybrush then slapping on a green wash would ramp up the contrast and give a much smoother finish, for approximately one extra minute of work and several more of drying time (a non-issue, as it's the final step and you're working on hordes of models). Similarly, the Daemons would look much smoother and more vibrant with a red glaze over the otherwise rough and desaturated orange drybrushing.

One or two extra minutes per model does add up, across an army, but you charge based on the quality you can deliver, as well as the timeframe. Giving people the option of commissioning a more attractive army at a somewhat slower pace and higher price expands your potential customer base. There's a reason why many commission painters, big names included, offer different "levels" of work: It broadens the market, increasing the chances of them filling their queue and, thereby, their pockets.

Thanks man! I will definitely try out some of those techniques on the ork army I'm painting at the moment... you pretty much hit the nail on the head, being a new painter did find my skill i n turn around time but i recently just started with washes and to be honest didn't know they existed until a while ago, these were some of my very first models and my customers were happy with the way they turned out but if i can make it them even happier at the cost of a few extra minutes a model applying a wash or taking an extra day I'm certainly down to do that... ill post pictures when im done with this army at the end of the weekend or next week, and you can further comment on them. Thanks buddy ill keep working and moving forward!

Take a look at some of the guides in my sig. There are tons of techniques you can use to achieve good results faster.

Truth is you'll probably find more work doing basic cheaply priced tabletop models than in whizz-bang OMG jaw dropping models.

IE a lot of people want to play but don't have time to paint, and just want a basic painted army. They don't want to fork over the $2500+ to professionally paint an army.

Back when I first started I would do basic tabletop for price. IE $35 tac squad costs $35 including assembly. I could have had business running out of my ears, and you can churn out models at that level.

IE you can do an entire tabletop army of most non-horde armies in a week easily.

Here are a few tips for you. First basing based models look 100% better than non-based. Fast cheap bases = Vallejo black lava. It's just a big jar of paint on texture drybrush to taste.

Then learn to dip. I've had people telling me how good my army looked and wanting to know what I did and all it was, was a minwax polyshades dip job.

Airbrush...get one. I got a cheap setup from harbor freight double action with compressor for under $100. Not the whizzbang best but it sprays paint well. This will allow you to speed things up tremendously.

Look up how to make your own washes. There is a tutorial on this forum. Very good washes, you can make in bulk for cheap. This cuts your costs by a lot and offers a better finished product to the customers.

Look up Golden Fluid Acrylic paints. They look more expensive at first glance until you realize your getting an ounce of paint for $1 more than 17ml Vallejo paint. It's very high quality but like most things not advertised to a niche hobby the price is better.

Createx also makes some very nice airbrush colors once again substantially cheaper than miniature hobby airbrush paints. Comes in 2 ounce bottles as well.

So let's see we've got priming, and base coating down to minutes. I do recommend Vallejo polyurethane primers.

So say someone wants you to paint a Ultramarine army. Prime airbrush, base coat airbrush, paint all the odds, and ends, wash, basic line highlights take mere minutes per model. Paint base with Vallejo black lava, drybrush 3 colors IE dark brown, lighter brown, very light bone white.
Stick a grass tuft on there if you want for good measure, and done.
I paint my bases with the airbrush except for the final drybrush of bone. This also dirties their feet, and makes it look like they've been tromping around.


Basic example of a regular rank and file tac marine using this technique with a little extra care given to some details. I could churn these out all day without breaking a sweat. Paint some show pieces to go with it, and I won my first best painted with these guys. After a little more polishing but to get them to the standard pictures didn't take much work at all.

Thanks for the tips ill start looking up some of the prices and raise the money to buy some new supplies!

Thanks again!
Tony A.

BTW, as some other people mentioned, you have a great attitude. I've been painting for over 30 years and am still learning all sorts of tricks. Too many people take feedback negatively and personally ... which is too bad.

All looks ok to me. Basic TT done well. Get some better unit photos (tripod, good light, background sheet) and post them in your OPs when showing off on forums and you should do quite well for yourself.

sorry but its either becuase im still new to the forum and dont yet know all the lingo or im having a brain fart at the moment haha... when you say OP's you mean ??

OP = Original Post.

It means original poster or opening post.

Thanks haha yeah that makes sense hahaha...